Mindfulness is often touted as a simple way of dealing with anxiety, stress and depression, but the simplicity of the practice can make it difficult to understand exactly how it would help when these feelings are so overwhelming.
Learning how to practice mindfulness in a way that suits you might be all it takes for it to click, becoming something that’s genuinely useful. However, in order to get to that point, it is also valuable to understand what mindfulness is, what it isn’t, and when it’s worth considering other approaches.
Basic practice
Perhaps the best advice to help you get started with mindfulness is simply to not overthink it. It’s not about stopping your thoughts and it’s not something that’s going to immediately cure you of your symptoms – you need to have realistic expectations before you begin. This is a technique that can help you to change your perspective on your thoughts and feelings over time, and help you to find calm by focusing your attention on the present rather than getting wrapped up in the past and future. That might sound too simple to help, but you might be surprised at how effective a small adjustment can be.
ADVERTISEMENT |
Regular practice
The key word with mindfulness is practice. The more you do it, the more effective you might find it to be. That’s not to say that you should beat yourself up if you struggle to fit it in every single day, just that it’s something that grows more useful with repetition. Mindfulness is often done through meditation, which can be something you do with ten minutes of free time at home. However, if you’re out and about, you might instead find it easier to try breathing techniques that can help you focus on your breath.
The afterglow
After you begin to get into the swing of mindful practice, you might find that afterward, you’re in a good headspace to get out and enjoy your day. This might put you in a prime position to go for a walk and pay more attention to the world around you, or it might be that this reprieve from your stresses is better spent focusing on your hobbies or activities that you enjoy. This doesn’t have to be anything special; half an hour with games at Lucky Days or online with your friends might help you to make the most of your good mood.
Complement your health
Getting into the right headspace for mindfulness is going to be much easier if you’re doing all you can to support your mental health in other areas. Exercising regularly and eating well are the foundational elements here. If you are struggling with anxiety or depression, it’s easy to feel as though nothing will help, but just making the effort to eat well and get active can provide a positive boost to your mental health that will make it easier to be more open-minded and receptive to what techniques like mindfulness have to offer.
